Blackberries, figs, grey and humpback whales, and spawning salmon all herald the arrival of autumn

As August turns the corner to September, some notable and familiar signs of change occur at Skelhp, which is known as “The place where the ancients dropped down from the heavens and taught us how to make canoe paddles out of yew wood.” The blackberries that have been thriving over the past three weeks start…

Transmission Difficulties: The Dignitaries once had a place of pride behind my father's desk. My mother eventually sold it. Now we know why

For her 97th birthday, I offered to take my mother to Whistler for the day, especially to see the new Audain Art Museum. She was ecstatic at the prospect, and especially eager to see the in-house collection of works by Emily Carr and E.J. Hughes – her two favourite B.C. realist painters. Mom was a…

Discovering Virginia Falls, a remarkable UNESCO World Heritage Site – and learning a little German

ON THE ALASKA HIGHWAY – In German, weichei means soft egg. It defines a person’s character. In Canada, we call them wimps. Charly Kudlacek is from Frankfurt in the German state of Hesse and, as eggs go, is hard-boiled. We met Charly and his wife Marion in a remote campground at Summit Lake on the…

It’s the classic ocean kayaker’s dilemma: should I wait or go now? You’re all loaded up. It’s probably early in the morning and you don’t want to delay others as your trip unfolds before you. Some or all of your trip-mates may have taken kayak water rescue courses and have at least some confidence in…

Climbing Fisher requires no mountaineering equipment, no technical skills. But the steady steepness makes for a long, hard day

Once in a blue moon something improbable occurs. A goal beyond expectations and beyond the capacity of aging knees is accomplished. The view of Fisher Peak from our Kimberley, B.C., condo is mesmerizing. For years I’ve gazed across the Rocky Mountain Trench at that daunting, taunting pinnacle. Fisher dominates the skyline in this range of…

For an issue that’s been so polarizing, the arguments against the pipeline expansion are surprisingly flawed

Nothing has been as divisive to national unity as the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion in the 25 years since the Quebec independence referendum. But unlike separation, this project – approved again last week by the federal government – is good for the country and will benefit all Canadians. Moving to Vancouver two years ago from…

Recent sawmill closures have exposed a raft of problems in the industry and government failure to ensure long-term productivity

Recent sawmill closures in British Columbia have brought to light the need for renewed focus on the mismanagement of B.C. forests over the past decades and what to do about it. That mismanagement is having a significant effect on the B.C. and Canadian economies. If you live in the B.C. interior, where more than 820…

It’s no accident that Canadian schools are among the best in the world. But if we withdraw education funding, the damage will be deep

Canadian schools are among the best in the world, and B.C. schools are arguably the best in Canada. This is so much the case that the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is studying our educational system to see how we’re achieving such exceptional results. It’s no surprise then that Canadian teachers are among…

Study of over 200 criminal convictions gleans critical insights about how Canadian organizations can reduce fraud

The first national study of its kind, Fraud Aware 2019: National Study on Reported Fraud Cases in Canada, has found that the most convictions and the largest reported losses due to fraud were seen in Ontario, Quebec, Alberta and British Columbia. Business advisory and accounting firm MNP LLP released the results of the study on…

Bill C-48 is the kind of extraordinary circumstance that requires the Senate fulfil its role as a regional counterbalance to the House

The Senate’s fundamental job is to review legislation while respecting its regions. In that sense, it is a unique part of Canadian Parliament. The Senate is a built-in safety valve to protect regional interests against the majoritarian impulses of the elected chamber. It ensures that all parts of this diverse country have a meaningful voice…

Owner, trainer and breeder Richard Yates was a go-to guy when it came to horse racing. Among his many achievements, he was extremely proud of the Hastings Racing Club in Vancouver that he helped form in 2015. On March 22, the racing community was hit by the sad news of Yates’s death from a massive…

The results of greater energy efficiency will materialize over the long term, even if politicians seek abbreviated timelines

Jock Finlayson and Denise Mullen Business Council of B.C. Metro Vancouver residents are rightly upset over paying the highest gasoline prices ever recorded in a North American city. Cost-of-living pressures are already significant for many households in British Columbia, making the recent jump in pump prices particularly hard to stomach. The unprecedented attention being given…

The province needs to get its house in order. That means, among other things, good old-fashioned police work

British Columbia is hardly a tax haven in the mould of Panama, yet organized crime has still established a foothold for laundering,– according to some estimates, $1 billion or more a year. Until last year, despite mounting activity, the problem flew under the radar. Now several reports have made their way to the media and…

The rules of writing opinion pieces haven't changed through the generations in the Robinson family

One day in 2004, Doug Firby, then the editorial page editor of the Calgary Herald, took me to lunch. I was the CEO of the Glenbow Museum and I had no idea what we were going to discuss. It turned out that he invited me to write occasional “op-eds” for the paper, on culture and…

The world of arts and culture offers lots of examples of gross expense and imported notions of what’s important. But there are alternatives

How are the National Post and the Globe and Mail doing in your neighbourhood? In Powell River, the big Toronto newspapers are on their last boomer gasp at the newsstands. In their place, piles of the weekly Powell River Peak and monthly Powell River Living fly off the counters and adjacent distribution boxes. The local…